A weeklong celebration of pride and love ended Sunday on Phuket with hundreds marching along the Patong beachfront while large crowds gathered to watch and cheer at the Phuket Pride parade.
While Thailand seems a good place to be LGBT, the parade is the only of its type in the kingdom.
Organized by a group called Phuket Loves You and supported by local businesses, Phuket Pride has been held annually since 1999. The last parade to march through Bangkok was nearly a decade ago in 2006, while Chiang Mai’s pride parade hasn’t been staged since 2009, when local government banned it under pressure from social conservatives.
What started small in Phuket has grown to become not only a statement of pride from lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgenders, but also to raise money for charities such as The Life Home Project, which improves living conditions of HIV-positive patients in Phuket.
Activities included a volleyball match, island trip, contests and of course a fabulous party held in Patong which is well known for its nightlife scene, with 20 to 30 gay bars, massage parlors, saunas and restaurants along Soi Paradise in the Paradise Complex.
On Sunday people started gathering at around 3pm on Soi Tan to walk along Prachanukroh Road to Beach Road along the Patong beach. The crowd was a mix of locals, expats and tourists, from bar boys to hospital medical workers, all joined to express pride and also raise awareness of HIV/AIDS issues by handing out condoms and information.
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